Device for cooling or condensing strongly corrosive or etching liquids, gases or vapors



J n 6. 1 F. CAMPE r-rr AL DEVICE FOR COOLING OR CONDENSING STRONGLYCORROSIVE OR ETCHING LIQUIDS, GASES OR VAPORS Filed May 29 1951 2Sheets-Sheet 1 Fril'z Cqmpz, Albm-E Her-m arm, M ichucl. Schmid.

Aflorne Y s June 26, 1 F. GAMPE ET AL DEVICE FOR COOLING OR CONDENSINGSTRQNGLY CORROSIVE OR ETCHING LIQUIDS, GASES OR VAPORS 2 Sheets-Sheet 2Filed May 29, 1951 .7 n van f n I 0 HI] Mom mm w ou run- T Z L O b n vwwA TMMAKMWQH Affornevs United States Patent 2,752,127 DEVICE FOR COOLINGOR CONDENSING STRONGLY CORRGSIVE R ETCHING LIQUIDS, GASES 0R VAPORSFritz Camps, Albert liermann, and Michael Schmid,

Rheinfelden, Baden, Germany, assignors, by mesne assignments, toDynamit-Actien-Gesellschaft vormals Alfred Nobel 8; Co., Troisdorf,Germany Application May 29, 1951, Serial No. 228,821

Germany December 23, 1948 Public Law 619, August 23, 1954 Patent expiresDecember 23, 1968 3 Claims. (Cl. 257241) The chemical industryfrequently faces the problem of cooling and condensing gases, vapors,and liquids which are of a corrosive or aggressive character. Thecooling and condensing devices to be used for this process, therefore,must not only be resistant against media such as hydrogen chloride,hydrochloric acid, chlorinated organic solvents and the like, but mustalso be composed of a material which has a good heat conductivity.Rubberized containers, while suited for hydrochloric-acid, are notuseable for organic solvents, whereas on the other hand lead containersare suitable for organic solvents but not for hydrochloric acid.Containers made of silicic materials such as stone ware, porcelain orglass. have too low a heat conductivity, while metals having therequired corrosion resistance such as Zirconium and. Tantalum are tooexpensive in order to be used for larger devices.

It is, therefore, an object of the present invention to provide coolingand condensing devices which, while having a good heat conductivity, aresuificiently resistant against corrosive and aggressive gases, vapors orliquids.

It is another object of this invention to provide devices of the typesset forth in the preceding paragraph which will consist of. materialwhich is not only a good heat conductor but also offerssufiicient'resistance against corrosion, and in addition thereto iseasily formable and machineable.

These and other objects and advantages of the invention will appear moreclearly from the following specification in connection with theaccompanying drawings in which:

Figure 1 represents a cooling device according to the present inventionwhich may be used for liquids and also for gases.

Figure 1a isa longitudinal section through a connecting nipple shown inFigure 1.

Figure lb is a cross-section through a dish-shaped hollow body used inthe column shown in Figure 1.

Figure 2 is a device according to the present invention for condensingvapors.

Figure 2a is a cross-section through a lens-shaped hollow body used inthe arrangement of Figure 2.

Figure 2b is a longitudinal section through a connecting nipple for usein connection with the arrangement of Figure 2.

The present application is a joint application with one of the jointapplicants being the sole applicant of the co-pendin'g applicationSerial No. 228,822 filed May 29, 1951, now Patent No. 2,726,072 grantedDecember 6, 1955.

General arrangement- According to the present invention, thedifiiculties outlined above have been overcome by making the cooling andcondensing devices of graphite or graphite containing moldable material,while preferably using individual hollow bodies made of graphite adaptedto be screwed together;

ice

According to a particularly advantageous embodiment of the invention,theindividual dish-shaped or lensshaped hollow bodies madeof graphite orgraphite containing moldable material are connected with each other bymeans of nipples which, whileconsisting of the same material asthe'hollow bodies, have a bore therethrough and are connected with saiddish-shaped or lens-shaped hollow bodies forming therewith a column. Inorder to secure a thorough whirling ofthe medium which passes throughthe hollow bodies,- and in order to assure an intimate contact with theinterior surfaces of the hollow bodies, the axial: bores of the nipplesare preferably closed at one end thereof, while lateraldischarge-openings are provided through- Which'the medium may enter intothe hollow spaces of the disc-shaped or lens-shaped hollow bodies.

Structural arrangement Referring now to the drawings in detail and toFigures l to 1b, thereof,.in particular, the structure shown thereinrepresents a cooling device for liquids which may also be used for gasesand comprises flat somewhat lens-shaped hollow bodies 11. As will beclear from Figure lb, the hollow body 11 has a lower threaded bore- 15and an upper threaded bore 16 separated from the lower bore 15 by anenlarged chamber 17. The threaded portions 15 and 16 of two adjacenthollow bodies 11 are respectively engaged by corresponding threadedportions 18 and 19 pertaining to a connecting nipple 12 shown inlongitudinal cross-section in Figure 1a, and interposed between saidlast mentionedtwo hollow bodies 11. As will be clear from Figure 1, thehollow bodies 11 and the connecting nipples 12, when properly assembled,form a hollow column with alternately changing cross-sections along thecolumn. This column is preferably from the bottom to the top passedthrough by the liquid or the gas to be cooled. As has been indicated bythe arrows shown in- Figure l, the medium to be cooled passes throughthe bores 13 of the nipples in lateral direction into the hollow bodies11 and from there into the axial bores 20 of the nipples.

The entire column as shown in the drawing is arranged in a container 14whichholds cooling water or another cooling liquid. This container mayconsist of any de sired material since it does not come into contactwith the corrosive medium. If desired, the device may also be employedin such away that the interior of the column is passed through by acooling medium while the column is surrounded by the medium to becooled. In this instance, also the outer container 14 must consist ofcorrosive resistant material, while the heat conductivity of thecontainer 14" is of no material importance.

With regard to the arrangement-shown in Figure 2, this arrangementrepresents a device for condensing vapors. The lens-shaped hollow bodies21', one of which is shown in section in Figure 2a, correspond to thehollow bodies 11 of the device shown in Figure 1. The

hollow bodies 21 are so shaped that the condensate from the top andpasses from one hollow body to the other one through the connectingnipples 22 while entering the hollow bodies through the radial openings23. The entire column similar to the column in Figurel is arranged in acontainer 24' which holds cooling liquid. Also in this embodiment thecorroding vapors and the condensate do not get into contact with thecontainer 24.

It is, of course, understood that with the two embodirnents justdescribed, two or more columns may be arranged in one cooling container.For instance the columns may stand or lie in boxes through which coldwater flows and, if desired, the columns may be combined into groupsarranged in parallel or in series.

In addition to being corrosion resistant and having a good heatconductivity, in making the column of graphite or graphite containingpressed material, the arrangement according to the present invention hasthe further advantage that it consists of a great number of equalbuilding elements which may also be the same for various purposes ofapplication. Thus, damaged parts may easily be exchanged andthe keepingof stock and securing of replacement parts is materially facilitated.

The nipples 12, 22 are preferably screwed into the hollow bodies 11, 21.However, if desired, they may also be cemented in or fitted into thehollow bodies if they are provided with slightly conical fittingsurfaces. The nipples shown in the various embodiments may have the sameshape and same dimensions for all devices also for hollow bodies ofdiflFerent size, which fact furthermore simplifies the stocking ofreplacement parts. The hollow bodies 11, 21 may produce in the simplestmanner by giving them the shape of bodies of rotation. However, ifdesired, they may also be polygonal or of any other desired shape.

It is, of course, understood that the present invention is by no meanslimited to the particular construction but also comprises anymodifications within the scope of the appended claims.

What we claim is:

1. In combination in a vertical column for the chemical industry,especially for cooling and condensing strongly corrosive etching and thelike liquids, gases, and vapors: a plurality of individual hollow fiatbodies, each of said hollow bodies having a chamber of a diameterequaling a multiple of its height and also having an axial boretherethrough with two spaced threaded sections separated from each otherby said chamber and provided with identical thread, a plurality ofhollow connecting bodies provided with two spaced threaded sectionscorresponding to the threaded sections of said hollow fiat bodies, eachof said hollow connecting bodies having a portion thereof interposedbetween two adjacent hollow flat bodies and having its threaded sectionsin engagement with the threaded sections of the respective adjacenthollow flat bodies, each of said hollow connecting bodies having anaxial bore open at one end and closed a at the other end and also havingradial passages adjacent said closed end of said axial bore and arrangedwithin the hollow chamber of the respective adjacent flat body tothereby effect communication of the respective axial bore with thechamber of the respective adjacent hollow body, and a tubular containersurrounding all of said hollow flat bodies and said connecting bodies inspaced relationship thereto, the arrangement being such as to allow thepassage of one fluid through said hollow flat and said hollow connectingbodies and to allow passage of another fluid through said tubularcontainer around said hollow flat and said hollow connecting bodies.

2; A column for cooling liquids and gases which comprises incombination: a plurality of individual hollow flat bodies, each of saidhollow bodies having a chamber of a diameter equaling a multiple of itsheight and Y also having an axial bore therethrough with two spacedthreaded sections separated from each other by said chamber and providedwith identical thread, a plurality of hollow connecting bodies providedwith two spaced threaded sections corresponding to the threaded sectionsof said hollow flat bodies, each of said hollow connecting bodies havinga portion thereof interposed between two adjacent hollow flat bodies andhaving its threaded sections in engagementwith the threaded sections ofthe respective adjacent hollow flat bodies, each of said hollowconnecting bodies having an axial bore open at the lower end thereof fordirect communication'with the chamber of the adjacent lower hollow flatbody and. closed at the upper end, each of said hollow connecting bodieshaving a portion thereof extending into the chamber of the respectiveadjacent upper hollow fiat body and being provided with radiallyarranged passage means located completely within the adjacent chamber ofthe respective upper flat hollow body for establishing communicationbetween said axial bore and the chamber of the respective adjacent upperhollow flatbody, said column being provided at the bottom thereof withinlet meansfor admitting the medium to be cooled and being provided atthe top thereof with outlet means for releasing the medium to be cooled,and tubular means surrounding said column in spaced relationship andbeing adapted to receive cooling liquid.

3. A column for condensing vapors and gases which comprises incombination: a plurality of individual'hollow flat bodies, each of saidhollow bodies having a chamber of a diameter equaling a multiple of itsheight and also having an axial bore therethrough with two spacedthreaded sections separated fromieach other by said chamber and providedwith identical thread, a plurality of hollow connecting bodies providedwith two spaced threaded sections corresponding to the threaded sectionsof said hollow flat bodies, each of. said hollow connecting bodieshaving a portion thereof interposedbetween two adjacent hollow fiatbodies and having its threadedsections in engagement with the respectiveadjacent threaded sections of, the respective adjacent hollow fiatbodies, each of said hollow connecting bodies having an axial bore openat the upper end. thereof for direct communication with the chamber ofthe respective adjacent upper hollow flat body and closed at the lowerend, each of said hollow connecting bodies having a portion thereofextending into the chamber of the respective adjacent lower hollow flatbody and being provided with radial passage means located completelywithin the adjacent chamber of the respective adjacent lower flat bodyfor establishing communication betweensaid axial bore and the chamber ofthe respective adjacent lower hollow flat body, said column beingprovided at the top thereofwith inlet means for admitting the medium tobe condensed and being provided atthe bottom thereof with outlet meansfor releasing the con densed medium, and tubular means surrounding saidcolumn in spaced relationship and being adapted to receive coolingliquid. i

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS OTHERREFERENCES Carbon and Graphite Products, a publication ofthe NationalCarbon Co. of 30 East 42nd St., New Yorknl7l,

N, Y., pages 4 to 7.

1. IN COMBINATION IN A VERTICAL COLUMN FOR THE CHEMICAL INDUSTRY,ESPECIALLY FOR COOLING AND CONDENSING STRONGLY CORROSIVE ETECHING ANDTHE LIKE LIQUIDS, GASES, AND VAPORS: A PLURALITY OF INDIVIDUAL HOLLOWFLAT BODIES, EACH OF SAID HOLLOW BODIES HAVING A CHAMBER OF A DIAMETEREQUALING A MULTIPLE OF ITS HEIGHT AND ALSO HAVING AN AXIAL BORETHERETHORUGH WITH TWO SPACED THREADED SECTIONS SEPARATED FROM EACH OTHERBY SAID CHAMBER AND PROVIDED WITH IDENTICAL THREAD, A PLURALITY OFHOLLOW CONNECTING BODIES PROVIDED WITH TWO SPACED THREADED SECTIONSCORRESPONDING TO THE THREADED SECTIONS OF SAID HOLLOW FLAT BODIES, EACHOF SAID HOLLOW CONNECTING BODIES HAVING A PORTION THEREOF INTERPOSEDBETWEEN TWO ADJACENT HOLLOW FLAT BODIES AND HAVING ITS THREADED SECTIONSIN ENGAGEMENT WITH THE THREADED SECTIONS OF THE RESPECTIVE ADJACENTHOLLOW FLAT BODIES, EACH OF SAID HOLLOW CONNECTING BODIES HAVING ANAXIAL BORE OPEN AT ONE END AND CLOSED AT THE OTHER END AND ALSO HAVINGRADIAL PASSAGE ADJACENT SAID CLOSED END OF SAID AXIAL BORE AND ARRANGEDWITHIN THE HOLLOW CHAMBER OF THE RESPECTIVE ADJACENT FLAT BODY TOTHEREBY EFFECT COMMUNICATION OF THE RESPECTIVE AXIAL BORE WITH THECHAMBER OF THE RESPECTIVE ADJACENT HOLLOW BODY, AND A TUBLUAR CONTAINERSURROUNDING